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Two mummified bodies found in Wyalusing home
The Daily Review (Towanda, PA) ^ | 6/17/2010

Posted on 06/17/2010 9:08:30 AM PDT by Born Conservative

State police announced Wednesday that they have served a search warrant at a private residence on Old Stagecoach Road in Wyalusing Township, where the mummified remains of two human beings were discovered.

The search warrant was executed on at 3 p.m. Tuesday, state police said in a press release that they issued on Wednesday.

The search warrant allowed the state police to search the home of 91-year-old Jean Stevens of Wyalusing, who lives on township Route 472, as well as other buildings on her property, according to a copy of the warrant that was filed in the office of Athens Magisterial District Judge Michael Shaw.

Two case workers with the Area Agency on Aging, Marlea Hoyt and Marcella Yasharian, had told the state police on Tuesday that Stevens has two bodies in her home, according to an affidavit of probable cause that was filed by the state police with their application for the search warrant.

The case workers said that one of the bodies is Stevens' late husband, Jimmy Stevens, and the other is Jean Stevens' sister, June, according to the affidavit.

Jean Stevens showed Yasharian June's body and told Yasharian that Jimmy Stevens' body "is rolled up in a rug on the premises," according to the state police's affidavit, which was signed by Cpl. Al Ogden of the state police at Towanda.

Stevens said that she had, with the help of others, disinterred Jimmy Stevens' body from a cemetery years ago and had disinterred June's body from its grave on the property shortly after burial, according to a statement made by Yasharian to the state police, which was quoted in the state police's affidavit.

Jimmy Stevens died on May 21, 1999, according to his obituary, which was published in The Daily Review.

June, whose last name was also Stevens, died at age 90 on Oct. 3, 2009, according to her obituary, which was obtained from the Web site of the McHenry Funeral Home in Wyalusing.

Yasharian told state police that Stevens "is in control of her mental faculties, (other than her acts of keeping the bodies in her home)," according to the affidavit.

State police cited three violations of the state crimes code as reasons for obtaining the search warrant.

The first is Title 18, section 3307, which is "institutional vandalism" and which occurs when someone knowingly desecrates, vandalizes, defaces or otherwise damages a cemetery or other facility used for the purpose of burial or memorializing the dead.

The second violation is Title 18, section 5509, which is "desecration of venerated objects" and which is a second-degree misdemeanor that occurs when someone intentionally desecrates a place of burial.

The third violation is Title 18, section 5510, which is "abuse of corpse" and which is a second-degree misdemeanor that occurs when someone "treats a corpse in a way that he knows would outrage ordinary family sensibilities."

Yasharian and Hoyt were very concerned for the welfare of Jean Stevens, state police said in their affidavit.

The search warrant was approved on Tuesday by Judge Shaw.

No further information was available from the state police on Wednesday about the incident.

The state police and the Bradford County Coroner's Office have scheduled a press conference for 1 p.m. today on the incident.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the state police at (570) 265-2186.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption
KEYWORDS: graverobber; jeanstevens; jimmystevens; junestevens; mummies; mummified; mummy; wyalusing
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To: Born Conservative
That's really sad. I'm not sure the charges are appropriate. It doesn't sound like she was trying to abuse or desecrate the graves or bodies. She sounded lonely. Criminal trespassing and put her in a mental facility?

Strange story. She should have had them cremated and put on the coffee table, instead.

21 posted on 06/17/2010 11:17:02 AM PDT by TNdandelion
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To: null and void

Can you imagine getting that call? What, Aunty? You want me to help you move? Well, okay. You want me to help you move my UNCLE? What do you mean this will involve some lime and a few shovels?


22 posted on 06/17/2010 12:53:24 PM PDT by momtothree
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To: momtothree

Uh. Well. Yes, I actually can...


23 posted on 06/17/2010 5:36:07 PM PDT by null and void (We are now in day 511 of our national holiday from reality. - 0bama really isn't one of US.)
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